Lumen (lore)
A Lumen is an individual who can use magic at will, but needs a magic crystal to properly channel their abilities. The protagonist, Elodie, was born with magic potential and claim to her mother's crystal, but she is far from being the only one in the story to have such powers. Given the theme of the game, Lumen play a very significant part in the story events even if Elodie herself does not become one. Both their reputation and powers can alter the course of the story significantly, and they are the subject of much background information and mentioned in many of the epilogues. Spoiler Warning: ''Plot details follow, read at your own risk'' Lumen Training Elodie may choose to become a Lumen herself. To do so she will need both her crystal and a magic tutor. Since Joslyn heavily disapproves of magic, Elodie will have to find a way to get her crystal before the year is over. As for tutors, Julianna will offer to teach Elodie very early into the game, but if refused Selene will step up instead. See Lumen for specifics. Lumen Characters The following characters possess/ed Lumen powers since the beginning of the game. For more information, including character who may potentially become Lumen depending on the story path, see Category:Lumen Elodie Portrait 1.png|Elodie Julianna.png|Julianna Selene.png|Selene Lucille.png|Lucille Charlotte-dossier.png|Charlotte Togami.png|Togami Unseen Female.png|Fidelia Unseen Male.png|Paulus Unseen Male.png|Latimer Lumen History Much of their history is told in the flavor text of History, Foreign Intelligence and Lore skill training. As noted in the text, many Lumen in synchrony can use their magic to invoke cataclysms, some of which have left permanent effects in the land. Also, powerful magic can cause a "magic backlash" that summons dangerous, almost-indestructible monsters (like the Doomshadow mentioned below). Lumen in Society For centuries, Lumen formed the royal court of Nova, until about 200 years before the events of the game. But in spite of many of Nova's pasts victories being the work of Lumen -- in particular the "gathering of light" that allowed it to become the once-mightiest empire of the world -- they were also guilty of many calamities. The greatest of these was the birth of the nigh-indestructible monsters that destroyed the Old Capital and now inhabit the Old Forest, and the Doomshadow that killed millions in Nova two hundred years ago and required the sacrifice of the Lumen Queen, Dukes and Duchesses. Events like this made the general public wary and afraid of Lumen, and word spread that their magic attracted dangers and tragedies. Since then public opinion turned against Lumen, with only the royal family being spared the backlash, if not always. Currently, only the duchy of Ursul (currently held by Duchess Julianna) and Queen Fidelia were publicly known to be Lumen, and because of her lineage it's expected of Princess Elodie to take her mother's crystal. Outside of Nova, King Togami made himself infamous for his use of magic in Shanjia's conquests, and the old country of Borealis is led by false "Lumen Shamans". Depending on Elodie's actions, public opinion concerning Lumen may take a turn for better or for worse. Magic Crystals Crystals are the artifacts necessary for an individual to gain magical powers. While studying Lore reveals some details such as Lumen being able to pass down their crystals, or the reason why the formerly Lumen-centric Nova has so few nowadays, it's through conversations with other Lumen (mostly Julianna and Selene) that reveal more detailed info (See below under Event-only Information.) It's not clear whether any person is capable of becoming a Lumen by activating a crystal, what it's clear is that it's not limited to the children of Lumens. Characters like Joslyn and Briony can become Lumen under specific conditions and epilogues despite being non-magical humans. Crystals appear to vary in shapes and coloration, some of which are shown onscreen in both detailed and stylistic rendering (See below under Gallery). Of those not explicitly shown, Togami's crystal is mauve, Lucille's is purple (as described if she's killed during Week 17), and the wife-killer's (Week 20) is orange. It's possible, but not confirmed, that the crystal's color depends on their owners' characters. While most of Nova's crystals have been lost to history, presumed to be trapped in the Old Capital or interred somewhere, some specific conversations, flavor texts and info pieces in the game clue to their whereabouts: * Both the Royal and Ursul crystals remain in the hold of their respective claimants. * The Mazomba crystal was requisitioned by a secret order after the sacrifice of the Duke/Duchess two-hundred years ago, and passed down its members to the current holder: Selene. * The Caloris crystal is kept in a secret trove by the ducal family. Its current keeper is Joslyn. * The Merva crystal is presumed lost along with the ducal family, but it's highly likely that the crystal in Lucille's possession is the Mervan one. * According to a 2013 post by Hanako, the Mead and Elath crystals are still around, but it's not said where. * Considering the lack of evidence or developer's commentary, the Sudbury, Maree and Hellas crystals may be truly lost. * Lillah does not have an ancestral crystal, since this duchy's foundation happened long after the establishment of the Novan Empire, and was conformed by Yeveni immigrants. * It's not said where does the crystal bonded to the wife-killer comes from. It may or may not be one of the lost ducal crystals. Magic Affinity The powers of a Lumen are varied, as shown by the Lore training flavor text. However, there seem to be some particular types of magic some Lumen are more adept at channeling than others (See under Magic Affinity table.) While the game's concept art seems to hint there's a physical transformation brought by gaining magic powers, specifically Elodie's Magical Girl outfit, no other Lumen is shown or described to do the same. In any case, this transformation may not be literal, only a representation of the feeling of gaining magic. Or equally likely, the fantastic display does occur, but simply does not cause any visible change to it's wielder, since Elodie's Magical Girl outfit is only available after enough Lumen training. Having a crystal is not the only way of channeling magic powers. Children of Lumen can inherit weaker magic powers even before activating a crystal (as is the case of both Elodie and Charlotte); however, it's unknown if this applies only to immediate offspring or if it wanes further down the line, and whether it makes any difference if one or both of the parents are Lumen. It also must be noted that Lumen magic is not the only kind of magic that exists in the setting. The Meditation flavor text show that it's possible to achieve a degree of astral sense through advanced meditation techniques, and considering Elodie must have learned it from non-magic tutors it must not be limited to Lumen. The Divination 100 flavor text also mentions that the priestesses of Nova have ways to request omens from the gods, possibly through supernatural methods considering that regular training includes the more mundane methods. Gallery Royal crystal.png|The Royal crystal Royal crystal glow.png|The Royal crystal glowing Ursul crystal.png|Ursul's crystal Ursul crystal glow.png|Ursul's crystal glowing Selene crystal.png|Selene's crystal Selene crystal glow.png|Selene's crystal glowing Caloris crystal.png|Caloris's crystal 1 Lumen Crystal.png|Lumen Crystal epilogue 2 Lumen Rejection.png|Lumen Rejection epilogue 10 Evil Magic.png|Evil Magic epilogue 14 Sailor Briony.png|Sailor Briony epilogue Category:Lore Category:Lumen Category:Plot Category:Spoilers